Still wanted: A home for 1,000 escape-prone crocodiles

The Israeli government has reportedly failed in its latest attempt to find a new home for the crocodiles living in Petza’el, a West Bank settlement in the Jordan Valley. Gadi Bitan opened his crocodile farm there in 1987 as a tourist attraction, but the neighbors put a stop to it in 2012 when 70 of the reptiles escaped.

Since then, the government has been trying to find a new home for the crocodiles, which can grew up to 9 feet long.

Bitan had thought he had found a new home for his creatures in Cyprus. The Cyprus Mail reported that a town called Achna had agreed to build a farm to house the reptiles, but would reconsider if local residents objected. Evidently, they did.

The Cypriot daily said TSA Crocopark — the Israeli firm behind the project — approached two other communities before Achna about opening a crocodile farm, but was turned down every time.

“The Civil Administration continues to work to solve the issue of the crocodiles. To our sorrow, despite the repeated attempts, we have not yet found a suitable place,” a government press release said.

We can’t help but wonder how the animals would manage in the swamps of New Jersey. Isn’t the American Dream in Secaucus looking for new tourist attractions?

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